Clinton Chiruta

Reluctant State?: The Struggle Against Malaria, in Colonial Swaziland 1930-1944

Clinton Chiruta

Ka-Zakhali Private School

liochiruta@gmail.com

Malaria was a major health issue in colonial Swaziland (now Eswatini). At its peak, the disease accounted for 32% of the national mortality. This paper re-interprets the tradition drawn on colonial anti-malaria measures in Africa, relying mainly on archival sources taken from the Eswatini National Archives and Records Services. It challenges the orthodox view that the period before 1945 witnessed success in malaria control in Africa, arguing that in Swaziland the incidence and mortality of malaria remained very high. This was partly due to the indifference of the colonial state towards malaria control before the start of World War II (WWII). Throughout the 1930s, the colonial rulers in Swaziland undertook ineffective anti-malaria measures, such as the use of quinine and propaganda, none of which proved effective against the disease. The paper explores the reasons behind the reluctance of the colonial state towards malaria control including preoccupation with policing the colony, the dearth of scientific knowledge about malaria, and the paucity of fiscal resources. However, this attitude changed during WWII when Britain aimed to improve the health of the colonized in order to increase their productivity. The paper shows that during WWII, the colonial authorities took steps to tackle malaria through draining rivers and oiling stagnant water. However, these measures were piecemeal and not extended throughout the entire territory. As a result, malaria continued to afflict the lives of the Swazi people.

BIOGRAPHY

Aspiring medical historian Clinton Chiruta has a B.E.d. and an M.A.H. from the University of Eswatini, formerly known as the University of Swaziland, where he completed his M.A.H. thesis in 2024 with the title "Dynamics, Constraints, and Shifts in the Anti-Malaria Campaign in Colonial Swaziland, 1930-1968." Chiruta is a Ph.D. candidate at the same university, where he is working on a research dissertation on the history of tuberculosis in Swaziland, examining the evolution of anti-tuberculosis strategies from 1932 to 2020. He is also working on an article titled "World War II and its Aftermath: The Anti-Malaria Control in Colonial Swaziland, 1940-1957." Chiruta is interested in the dynamics and changes in anti-tuberculosis strategies during colonial and post-colonial Swaziland.